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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29204556">we're made from the same thread, weaved from our grim past</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallingforboys/pseuds/fallingforboys'>fallingforboys</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>don't let go darling, you still have a life to love [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Teen Wolf (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Corey Bryant &amp; Theo Raeken Friendship, F/M, Good Peter Hale, Good Theo Raeken, M/M, Malia and Theo bonding, Malia and Theo vs. Stiles, McCall Pack, Peter Hale is a Little Shit, Scott and Liam are Dragged Along for the Ride, Scott is a Good Friend, Stiles Stilinski is a Little Shit, Theo Raeken &amp; Brett Talbot Friendship, Theo Raeken &amp; Malia Tate Friendship, Theo Raeken &amp; Stiles Stilinski Friendship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 05:27:22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>8,889</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29204556</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallingforboys/pseuds/fallingforboys</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Theo was desperately fighting the urge not to stab Malia.</p><p>“You did <i>what?</i>”</p><p>“I didn’t <i>mean</i> to, it just kind of… <i>happened</i>,” Malia explained, and Theo dragged a hand down his face.</p><p> </p><p>(or some one-shots about Malia and Theo bonding)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Liam Dunbar/Theo Raeken, Scott McCall/Malia Tate</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>don't let go darling, you still have a life to love [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2142510</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>277</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. i say that we’re not alike a million times (and every single time, my heart skips a beat)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Theo was desperately fighting the urge not to stab Malia.</p><p> </p><p>“You did <em> what? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>“I didn’t <em> mean </em> to, it just kind of… <em> happened</em>,” Malia explained, and Theo dragged a hand down his face.</p><p> </p><p>“How does blowing up Peter’s apartment just… <em> happen? </em>” Theo hissed.</p><p> </p><p>Malia bared her teeth at him. “Can you help me or not?” </p><p> </p><p>Theo sighed. “When does he get back?” he asked, leaning against the counter in his kitchen. He still didn’t <em> fully </em> understand how Malia managed to blow up Peter’s apartment, but apparently it had involved a wolf plushie (Theo didn't know why Peter had one, but he wasn’t going to try and figure it out), boiling water, and a misplaced thumbtack. Don’t ask Theo how those things led to an explosion because he really, <em> really </em> didn’t know. </p><p> </p><p>“Sunday,” the werecoyote replied bluntly, crossing her arms over her chest. “We have four days to fix this.”</p><p> </p><p>“How do you want to fix an entire <em> apartment </em> in <em> four days</em>?” Theo said in a strangled voice, because seriously, was she <em> insane? </em></p><p> </p><p>“Well, we have to,” Malia snapped, “Peter’s going to lose his shit if he comes back from his vacation and sees what’s left of his apartment like <em> that</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>“You know most kids draw on the walls or flood the bathroom when their parents are gone,” Theo declared, looking up at the werecoyote. “It makes sense that you’d skip over all of that and just go to blowing up the apartment instead.”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Theo</em>,” Malia snarled, and he raised his arms in surrender. </p><p> </p><p>“I still don’t know why you think <em> I </em> can help you with this,” the chimera began, “And why were you in Peter’s apartment in the first place?”</p><p> </p><p>Malia looked down, and it almost looked like she was… <em> blushing? </em> “He’s a good cook, and he has all these recipe books in his apartment, and Scott and my anniversary is coming up, and I wanted to make something, so I thought I could try it there, because no one would <em> ever </em> expect me to be there, and I could try and perfect something so I could make it for Scott, and–”</p><p> </p><p>Theo cut off her rambling. “<em>Okay</em>, I got it Malia,” he said, his eyes twinkling. “You know if Peter found out that you blew up his apartment cause you were trying to learn how to <em> cook</em>, he’d never let you live it down, right?”</p><p> </p><p>Malia had him slammed against the wall with her claws around his neck in the next second, her eyes flashing at him. “And <em> if </em> he finds out, you will be the <em> first </em> person I kill,” she growled. “<em>Got it? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>Theo choked out a <em> yes</em>, and Malia released him. He shouldn’t push her, she was already about to slit his throat, but this opportunity was too good to pass up. “Does Scott know he’s dating a criminal?”</p><p> </p><p>“Theo, I’m <em> this </em> close to digging my claws into your neck,” the werecoyote seethed, and Theo pressed himself back onto the wall, “One more word and I <em> will </em> do it.”</p><p> </p><p>“But then you won’t have anyone to help you,” Theo teased, pushing off against the wall to grab his phone. “You sure you want to face Peter’s wrath all alone?”</p><p> </p><p>She let out a frustrated grunt. “Can we just fix this as fast as possible? I told Scott that I was coming over because you were having problems with Liam.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo squawked, whirling around to face the werecoyote. “Why the fuck would you say <em> that?</em> He’s gonna go talk to Liam now.”</p><p> </p><p>Malia waved him off. “He’ll be fine. But <em> we </em> won’t unless we fix this. If Peter comes back before we do, I’m dragging you down with me.”</p><p> </p><p>“I hate you,” Theo said, after staring at her for a few moments. “I really, <em> really </em> hate you.”</p><p> </p><p>“I hate you too,” she replied, “But right now, we need to make sure <em> Peter </em> won’t hate us.”</p><p> </p><p>Ten minutes later, Theo was frozen, staring at Peter’s– well, what <em> used </em> to be Peter’s apartment. </p><p> </p><p>“There’s no way to fix this, Malia, we’re <em> dead</em>. Peter’s gonna kill us.”</p><p> </p><p>Malia smacked the back of his head. “If anyone can figure it out, it’s you, so <em> get on with it.</em>”</p><p> </p><p>The chimera whipped his head to look at the werecoyote. “That almost sounded like a compliment.”</p><p> </p><p>“You wish,” Malia snorted. “With all the experiments you’ve been doing down at Deaton’s, I have a feeling something’s had to have blown up at least <em> once</em>. So you’re used to it.”</p><p> </p><p>Okay, so maybe that was true, but Theo’s gonna take it as a compliment anyway. When Deaton and Argent found out how <em> much </em> he knew, both from reading random books and from the things he picked up while he was with the Dread Doctors, they offered him a job as Deaton’s supernatural assistant. He had been sad to leave the bookstore, but Beth had pretty much fired him when she found out, telling him that he was wasting his talents. </p><p> </p><p>“We need help,” Theo finally said, his eyes taking in the shattered glass on the kitchen floor. He gave Malia a meaningful glance, and her eyes immediately widened. </p><p> </p><p>“No,” she said firmly, “Absolutely not.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo sighed, running a hand through his hair. “We don’t have a choice.”</p><p> </p><p>__________________________________</p><p> </p><p>“Holy <em> fucking </em> shit, what did you guys <em> do? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>Theo let out an indignant noise, turning to Stiles, who’s eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his skull. “<em>I </em> didn’t do <em> anything</em>, it was all her.”</p><p> </p><p>“Look,” Malia said, irritated, “Are you going to help us or not?”</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, yeah I’ll help,” Stiles breathed out, still gaping at the apartment. “So we have four days to clean up <em> all of this </em> and replace everything that you broke?”</p><p> </p><p>Malia nodded, and Theo saw a brief flash of sorrow in her eyes when she looked at the kitchen, and he knew she was thinking of Scott and her failed plan. “He never checks what we buy, so we can use his money.”</p><p> </p><p>Stiles turned to Malia, and then Theo, because it was obvious that the werecoyote was sad, but the chimera wasn’t going to reveal what she did. That wasn’t his story to tell, and Malia would also probably kill him in his sleep if he did. “Malia, is this about Sc–”</p><p> </p><p>She let out a low growl, cutting the human’s question off. “Stop wasting time, we need to fix this,” the werecoyote snapped, and walked out, saying that she was going to get her phone from Theo’s apartment. </p><p> </p><p>Stiles gave Theo a glance. “You know what’s going on?”</p><p> </p><p>The chimera turned to where Malia had disappeared, and sighed. “I have an idea, but nothing certain yet. But she’s right, we don’t have a lot of time.”</p><p> </p><p>And with that, the two boys left the ruined apartment, planning everything they needed to do before the slightly murderous owner got back. </p><p> </p><p>Stiles left to call the plumber, because apparently the small explosion had severely damaged the plumbing in the kitchen. Theo went back to his own apartment, closing the door quietly behind him to see Malia sitting on the couch, her legs pulled up, her arms wrapped around them. </p><p> </p><p>He made his way to her, dropping down on the other end of the couch. After a few minutes of silence, he spoke up. “You wanna tell me what’s really going on?”</p><p> </p><p>Malia stayed quiet, but Theo’s nose picked up on the flashes of emotions– irritation, guilt, uncertainty, and finally, resignation.</p><p> </p><p>“You’re not the only one who killed their family,” she said quietly, and Theo was taken aback for a moment. For one, he hadn’t expected her to answer honestly– the werecoyote tended to be allergic to emotion and vulnerability. But the more surprising part was what she had said.</p><p> </p><p>“Malia, you know it wasn’t your fault, right?” Theo reassured gently, because a self-deprecating Malia is one he never thought he’d see, and he wasn’t really sure how to deal with it. </p><p> </p><p>“Scott’s so <em> good</em>,” she blurted out, and Theo startled at the sudden increase in volume. “He’s so <em> perfect</em>, never does anything <em> wrong</em>. And I– that’s not me. I can’t be like him, Theo. I’ll <em> never </em> be like him.”</p><p> </p><p>And Theo knew <em> exactly </em> what she was saying. Because he felt the <em> exact </em> same way when he thought about Liam. Liam was good, so <em> good</em>, and that wasn’t Theo. No matter how much he’d changed, how much he reformed, he’d never reach <em> that </em> level of good. </p><p> </p><p>“Malia, <em> no one </em> can be like Scott,” he stated, his eyes flickering over to the werecoyote, “He’s a <em> true alpha </em> for a <em> reason</em>. We can’t compare to him, <em> no one </em> can. But that doesn’t mean that you’re not <em> good</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>She looked at him, and Theo had never seen her face was so <em> open </em> . He continued, drawing from his own feelings and thoughts, and who would’ve ever thought that he’d be able to <em> empathize </em> with <em> Malia? </em></p><p> </p><p>“You’re in the pack for a reason– you’re <em> good</em>. This is <em> Scott McCall’s </em> pack that we’re talking about,” Theo added, “You wouldn’t be here if you weren’t. And if you talked about this with Scott, he’d tell you the same thing.”</p><p> </p><p>Malia stared at him for a couple of moments. “I never thought I’d see the day when <em> Theo Raeken </em> would comfort me.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo snorted, bringing his legs up on the couch. “And I never thought I’d see the day I could relate to <em> Malia Tate</em>, but here we are.”</p><p> </p><p>She gave him a confused look, until it seemed to hit her. “Liam.”</p><p> </p><p>“He might as well be mini-Scott,” Theo breathed out, tilting his head back to rest on the couch. It said a lot about how far him and Malia had come that he was leaving his neck completely exposed in front of her. “And I can’t compare to that.”</p><p> </p><p>“Listen to your own words, dumbass,” Malia drawled, giving him a glare, “You don’t <em> need </em> to compare to that, because <em> no one can</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo sank back into the couch, suddenly letting out a short laugh. “Look at us. Bonding over our self-loathing and our <em> perfect </em> boyfriends. If someone told me about this last year, I probably would’ve killed them on the spot.”</p><p> </p><p>The werecoyote let out a quiet snort. “Well, apparently Peter unconsciously knew that we were similar when he basically adopted you. He doesn’t do things unless he has a reason.”</p><p> </p><p>“Speaking of Peter, you out of your mood yet?” Theo asked, his voice teasing as he nudged her gently, “Cause we have a lot of work to do, and the only one doing anything right now is <em> Stiles</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>Malia stood up, walking over to the kitchen counter to get her phone. “Is letting Stiles do all the work while we go on a run considered rude?”</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t trust Stiles not to fuck it up on purpose so we get caught, so I’m gonna go with yes,” the chimera said bluntly, and Malia smirked. </p><p> </p><p>“If that happened, I’d pin it all on him. Who’d you think Peter would believe, his <em> daughter </em> and his <em> adopted son</em>, or <em> Stiles? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>Theo’s lips quirked up in a crooked smirk. Seems like him and Malia were more alike than he thought. </p><p> </p><p>__________________________________</p><p> </p><p>“When did we break up?”</p><p> </p><p>Theo winced, and Malia let out a snort, hearing Liam’s voice through the phone, and he flipped her off. This was <em> her </em> fault.</p><p> </p><p>“We didn’t, don’t listen to Scott,” he replied as he and Malia cleaned up the broken glass on the kitchen floor.</p><p> </p><p>“I didn’t say anything about Scott,” Liam accused, and Theo stilled. He just gave it away, for fuck’s sake. “What’s going on?”</p><p> </p><p>“Uh... “ Theo looked at Malia, who shook her head slightly. He sighed. “I’ll explain later, I promise.”</p><p> </p><p>Liam was silent for a few seconds. “Bring me pizza when you come,” he said, and then hung up the phone. Theo stared at the black screen for a moment, before shaking his head and pocketing it.</p><p> </p><p>“He trusts you,” Malia noted, and <em> yeah</em>, okay, that was what was going through Theo’s head, but he didn’t think the werecoyote would comment on it. “He trusts you, and he knows you wouldn’t do anything to hurt him. Stop overthinking it.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo let out a short humorless laugh, dumping the glass in the trash can. “I don’t think I’ll ever stop ‘overthinking it.’ Anyway,” he changed the subject, not wanting to talk about it anymore, “When’s the window guy getting here?”</p><p> </p><p>Malia studied him for a couple of moments before turning away. “Stiles said an hour. It’s the last thing we need to get fixed.”</p><p> </p><p>The chimera snorted. “I can’t believe we actually managed to get everything done before Peter comes back tomorrow.”</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, well, hopefully he never finds out what happened,” the werecoyote retorted, sitting on the chair by the counter, the replacement for the one that had been damaged beyond repair. “We make a pretty good team when we’re not fighting.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo’s head snapped to Malia, who was looking at the counter, her head bent low. “Yeah, I guess we do,” he said softly, before his lips quirked up. “Even though Stiles did most of the work.”</p><p> </p><p>A small smirk settled on Malia’s face. “We paid for everything.”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Peter </em> paid for everything,” Theo corrected, crossing his arms over his chest. “It’s pretty funny that we’re using <em> his </em> money to replace everything, even though <em> you </em> were the one who broke all of it.”</p><p> </p><p>“His money is our money, at this point,” Malia said, and the chimera felt something in his chest warm at <em> our</em>. “He should’ve known that when he gave us the cards.”</p><p> </p><p>“Oh, I’m sure he does,” Theo teased, “He just didn’t know you’d sneak into his apartment to <em> cook </em> and then blow everything up.”</p><p> </p><p>The werecoyote smacked his shoulder. “Can I use your apartment?”</p><p> </p><p>“To cook? Absolutely not,” he answered, “You’ve already blown up one apartment, we don’t need another one on our hands.”</p><p> </p><p>“Well, <em> help me </em> then. I know you’ve been working on cooking, Liam always mentions all the food you keep bringing him to taste. You can teach me.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo gave her a skeptical look. “You really want me to teach you how to cook?”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Yes,</em>” Malia breathed out impatiently, “I want to do this for Scott, and you’re my best bet.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo wasn’t sure how this was going to go, but the least he could do was at least <em> try</em>. He desperately hoped that it wouldn’t end up in a blown-up kitchen.</p><p> </p><p>__________________________________</p><p> </p><p>Peter was back, and he hadn’t noticed that his apartment had completely been destroyed and remade in the time he was gone. </p><p> </p><p>Theo and Malia could breathe a little easier, exchanging relieved looks at the pack meeting that night. They had sworn Stiles to secrecy, although if you asked the human, he would say they more or less <em> threatened </em> him. </p><p> </p><p>Which Theo would neither confirm nor deny. </p><p> </p><p>He felt Liam’s arms snaking around his waist, and he sank back into the touch. He had explained to his boyfriend what had happened, not <em> all </em> of the details, obviously, but enough that Liam understood why Scott had come to his house yesterday asking him if he was okay after breaking up with Theo. </p><p> </p><p>And Scott, <em> god</em>. When Theo had entered his house, the alpha pulled him aside, told him that <em> yes</em>, Liam was his beta, but if he needed anything, or just wanted comfort, he was there for him. The chimera had almost burst out laughing, but he managed to hold it back. He was grinning when he explained to Scott that <em> no</em>, they hadn’t broken up, and they were happily still together. He had gotten a confused look from the alpha, before he turned away, mumbling something about talking to Malia.</p><p> </p><p><em> Oops</em>, Theo thought. Well, if she was going to lie to her boyfriend, and had involved Liam and Theo in it, he supposed she could handle the consequences. </p><p> </p><p>When everyone had finished eating, they all lounged lazily in the living room, casually conversing about god knows what. Theo’s pretty sure he heard Stiles and Mason arguing whether Chewbacca could take down Scott, and he tuned out of <em> that </em> conversation quickly. </p><p> </p><p>Suddenly, Theo heard his name. He glanced up to see Peter looking up at him and Malia, who he had also called. </p><p> </p><p>“The next time you two want to cover up that you destroyed my apartment, maybe don’t leave your jacket in the kitchen.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo’s eyes widened, and his head snapped to Malia, who looked just as shocked and panicked. But… Theo never left his jacket at Peter’s apartment. And neither did Malia, judging from the slight confusion drifting off of her.</p><p> </p><p>It hit them at the same time. </p><p> </p><p>“<em>Stiles,</em>” they snarled in unison, and the human jumped up, his hands up. </p><p> </p><p>“I didn’t do anything, I just might’ve grabbed Theo’s jacket from his apartment cause I was cold and accidentally left it in Peter’s. <em> Accidentally</em>,” Stiles rushed out, and yelped as Theo and Malia both stood up, growling. “Derek, <em> help me</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>The werewolf raised his eyebrow at his boyfriend, then turned back to the angry siblings. “You’re on your own. I’m not getting in between this.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo bared his teeth at the human, Malia copying him. </p><p> </p><p>“Children, children, calm down,” Peter said with a smirk on his face. “I’m not mad, I’m actually quite impressed that you two managed to fix everything without breaking something else in the process with your fighting.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo took a deep breath, retracting his claws and fangs. “We can work together when we <em> need </em> to.”</p><p> </p><p>Malia let out a low growl. “I still vote on killing Stiles. Theo, care to join?”</p><p> </p><p>The chimera’s lips tilted up at the squeak the human let out, hiding behind Derek. “No, we can get him back another way.” His eyes were twinkling as he looked at Malia, and a smirk settled on her mouth as she took in his joyful expression. </p><p> </p><p>“Wait, what other way?” Stiles asked, panic evident in his voice. “<em>What other way? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>Theo snickered, sinking back into Liam’s embrace. He stayed silent, letting the human work himself up trying to figure out what Theo and Malia were planning. </p><p> </p><p>He was sure whatever they came up with, it would be highly amusing– well, for <em> them</em>. Stiles would probably hate it, but oh well. Can’t make <em> everyone </em> happy.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. i hate to admit that you might know me like the back of your hand (and maybe it’s because i know you like that too)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>After a fight with Liam, Theo finds himself in front of Scott's house. But he didn't come here for the alpha.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Theo Raeken didn’t cry often. </p><p> </p><p>He didn’t cry <em> ever</em>– a byproduct of his years with the Dread Doctors, years of hiding his emotions, years of pretending he was numb so they wouldn’t find a reason to declare him a <em> failure</em>.</p><p> </p><p>So Theo didn’t cry often, but right now, he was pretty fucking close.</p><p> </p><p>The fight with Liam wasn’t supposed to happen, and it was a culmination of a lot of things, including Liam being pissed off from a bad week at school and Theo being exhausted from work. But Theo didn’t expect things to go south so quickly, in fact, he had even planned a nice, relaxing evening with his boyfriend, something he’d been looking forward to for the entire week. </p><p> </p><p>Look how that turned out.</p><p> </p><p>It had started with something small– Liam being annoyed at Theo asking him about school, because how the hell was Theo supposed to know that it had been a bad week– but had eventually escalated to Theo screaming at Liam that he would never be able to measure up to Liam and storming out of his own apartment. </p><p> </p><p>And now here he was, struggling not to let the burning behind his eyes win over his will not to cry, as he sat in his truck in front of Scott’s house. He didn’t know why <em> this </em> was the first place he thought of because he <em> should’ve </em> gone to Brett or Corey or Layla, but something in his chest unconsciously drove him here. </p><p> </p><p>But he didn’t get out, just sat there with his burning eyes and the lump in his throat and his tight chest. The truck door suddenly opened, and Theo jumped at the noise.</p><p> </p><p>Malia’s eyes were narrowed as she took in Theo’s crumpled clothes and the way his mask suddenly fell into place, concealing everything he had been thinking of. “Get out.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo didn’t move for a second, but then the werecoyote let out a low growl, and he slowly stepped out of his truck, slamming the door behind him. Malia grabbed his arm and pulled him into the house, and Theo wondered for a moment why he chose Scott’s house when he was driving. A vague memory fluttered through his mind, and Theo latched onto it.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> He’s so perfect, never does anything wrong. And I– that’s not me. I can’t be like him, Theo. I’ll never be like him. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>Huh. Guess his brain was better at unconsciously making connections than Theo thought. He didn’t come here for <em> Scott</em>, he came for <em> Malia</em>.</p><p> </p><p>Malia shoved Theo onto the couch roughly before sitting at the opposite end, and Theo got a sudden feeling of deja-vu– it was a distinctly similar situation from weeks ago at <em> his </em> apartment, after Malia had blown up Peter’s kitchen. </p><p> </p><p>“Why were you sitting outside for the last twenty minutes?”</p><p> </p><p>Theo avoided Malia’s gaze, didn’t answer her question, just picked at a loose thread on his sweater. </p><p> </p><p>“Theo…” Malia’s voice held a warning, but under it, Theo picked up a hint of concern. It was almost laughable, that <em> Malia</em>, the same werecoyote that he had shot and betrayed and that hated him not a long time ago, was <em> concerned</em>. For <em> him. </em> </p><p> </p><p>But Theo still stayed silent, because he didn’t know <em> what </em> to say. <em> Liam and I had a fight </em> sounded too normal, because it <em> was </em> for them. And <em> I’m not good enough for Liam </em> came too close to the truth, and Theo didn’t want to say it out loud. Even though he had already admitted it to her weeks ago when <em> he </em> was comforting <em> her</em>. </p><p> </p><p>“Where’s Scott?” is what Theo said instead, because this was <em> his </em> house, and Malia gave him a knowing look, like she knew <em> exactly </em> what Theo was trying to do.</p><p> </p><p>“With Stiles.” Malia’s answer was short, not taking the bait that Theo was trying to offer. She studied him for another few moments before standing up. “Let’s go, I’ve been dying to go on a run.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo didn’t object, stripping quickly and shifting, Malia following. They ran out of the house, making their way to the preserve, and the cold air was biting, but Theo ignored it. Malia suddenly nipped at his leg and Theo growled before shoving her back. The playful fighting continued for a while, and Theo slowly felt the tension in his chest unravel. Not completely, but enough that he stopped engaging in the play-fight, dropping onto the ground. Malia seemed to notice something had changed, because she nudged Theo’s side, tilting her head to the left when he looked up. </p><p> </p><p>They walked back to Scott’s house rather than running back, and when they made it inside, their clothes were still in the same place they left them, signaling that Scott hadn’t come back yet. They both shifted, pulling on their clothes, and Theo collapsed onto the couch, Malia doing the same. </p><p> </p><p>“You ready to talk now?” she asked, and Theo let out a heavy sigh, sinking back into the couch even more. </p><p> </p><p>“We fought.”</p><p> </p><p>Malia’s eyebrow rose. “And?”</p><p> </p><p><em> Too normal</em>. “I–”</p><p> </p><p>Theo couldn’t bring himself to say it, because no matter how true it was, it still <em> hurt</em>. </p><p> </p><p>“You don’t think you’re good enough for him,” Malia finished for him, and his head snapped up to the werecoyote, her lips pursed as she stared at him. She was smarter than a lot of people gave her credit for, Theo thought, and dropped his head down as he nodded slowly. </p><p> </p><p>“I <em> know </em> I’m not good enough for him,” he corrected, picking at that loose thread again. </p><p> </p><p>“You’re right.” The blunt answer took him by surprise– even though it really shouldn’t have– and Theo flinched. Malia continued, ignoring Theo’s reaction. “You’re not good enough for him. Just like I’m not good enough for Scott, just like Derek’s not good enough for Stiles, just like Argent’s not good enough for Melissa.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo stared at Malia, and her eyes were unyielding as she returned his look. “I can keep going if it hasn’t sunk in yet.”</p><p> </p><p>“You guys are different,” Theo murmured, “You’re all the good guys.”</p><p> </p><p>“We weren’t always,” Malia snapped, and Theo was taken aback at the conviction in her voice. “But you’re right, we <em> are </em> different. Because we’ve <em> changed</em>, we became the good guys. <em> Just like you</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>“Malia, you can’t compare what I did to what you did. Or what Derek did, or Argent. What I did was a million times wor–”</p><p> </p><p>The werecoyote huffed in frustration. “You <em> changed</em>. Yes, what you did was horrible and messed up, but we’ve all fucked up. Look at Peter, he’s probably the most fucked up out of all of us, but he’s not worrying about it like you are.”</p><p> </p><p>“He thinks he’s not good enough for <em> you</em>,” Theo stated, and Malia froze. “He’s worrying about it too, Malia. He's just better at hiding it.”</p><p> </p><p>She gaped at him, and Theo thought she had known and just ignored it, but apparently <em> not</em>. But she came back to her senses and she glared at him. “We’re talking about <em> you</em>, not Peter.”</p><p> </p><p>“You’re the one who brought him up,” Theo retorted, and Malia scowled.</p><p> </p><p>“The <em> point is</em>, being supernatural fucks with all of us, Theo. We’ve all made mistakes, all have things we regret. Sure, Liam’s might not be as bad as yours, but he still has them.”</p><p> </p><p>“He’s too good.”</p><p> </p><p>“Oh my <em> god</em>, Theo, you’re not even <em> listening</em>,” Malia seethed, and Theo let out a low growl. </p><p> </p><p>“Stop trying to convince me I’m good enough,” he spit out, his fists clenching. “I’m <em> not</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>“For fuck’s sake, Theo,” Malia said sharply, “What did Liam <em> say </em> to you?”</p><p> </p><p>The words pierced his heart as Liam’s voice echoed in his mind, and all the fight left Theo, and he dropped his head into his hands, rubbing his temples. “He said that I wasn’t trying enough.”</p><p> </p><p>The room stilled. “<em>What? </em>” the werecoyote hissed, and Theo looked up. Her face was hard, her eyes stone as she looked at him. </p><p> </p><p>“It wasn’t his fault, I pushed him too hard,” Theo said, “Not on purpose, but it was still my fault.”</p><p> </p><p>The front door opened, and Scott made his way in, and Theo stiffened. But the gentle look in the alpha’s eyes calmed him down a little, and Scott gave him and Malia a confused look. “What’s going on? Did something happen?”</p><p> </p><p>Theo didn’t say anything because he didn’t know if it was a good idea to tell Scott, but Malia apparently didn’t care. “I’m about to go kill Liam.”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Malia</em>,” Theo blurted out, wrapping a hand around her wrist when she started to stand up. “I told you it was <em> my </em> fault.”</p><p> </p><p>“It wasn’t,” she snapped, and Scott quickly moved to hold her back, “He shouldn't have said that.”</p><p> </p><p>“Said what? Theo, what’s going on?” Scott asked, rubbing his thumb over Malia’s knuckles to calm her down. </p><p> </p><p>Theo sighed. So much for not telling Scott. “Me and Liam had a fight.”</p><p> </p><p>“That’s not the whole story,” Malia said, scowling, but she didn’t look like she was going to run off anymore, so Scott let her go. “Liam told Theo he wasn’t trying enough.”</p><p> </p><p>“What?” the alpha breathed out, his eyes wide, obviously not expecting that his beta would say something like that. And this was why Theo hadn’t wanted Scott to know. </p><p> </p><p>“It’s fine, guys,” Theo glared at Malia, “This is my problem, I’ll figure it out.”</p><p> </p><p>“You were on the verge of <em> tears </em> when you showed up,” the werecoyote practically yelled, “It’s obviously not <em> fine</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>“Okay,” Scott interjected, placing a hand on Malia’s shoulder. “Let’s all sit and calm down a little bit. And then we can talk about what happened.” The alpha turned to Theo, giving him a firm look, and Theo knew he wasn’t going to be able to get out of this.</p><p> </p><p>Malia and Scott sat down on one end of the couch, and Theo dropped into the other. His phone buzzed, and Theo thought it would be Liam, but it was Corey. </p><p> </p><p><b>corey:</b> <em> theo where are you </em></p><p> </p><p><b>corey:</b> <em>pick up your phone dumbass</em></p><p> </p><p>Well, Liam went to Mason, then. His phone rang again, and Theo looked at Scott, who was still calming Malia down, so he picked it up.</p><p> </p><p>“Theo, where the fuck are you?”</p><p> </p><p>“Hello to you too, Corey,” Theo answered dryly, and Corey hissed a <em> shut up</em>.</p><p> </p><p>“Liam’s at Mason’s, and they kicked me out. I know something happened, Theo. Where are you?”</p><p> </p><p>Theo stifled a sigh. “Scott’s.”</p><p> </p><p>“You went to <em> Scott </em> instead of me or Brett or Layla?” Corey asked incredulously, and Theo almost laughed, cause wasn’t he thinking the same thing when he first showed up here?</p><p> </p><p>“Not Scott. But you might as well join us,” Theo declared, “I’m not in the mood to repeat the story three different times, so call Brett and Layla too.”</p><p> </p><p>Corey agreed, saying they’d be there in a few minutes, and Theo hung up, looking up at the couple across from him. “Sorry, I should’ve asked before inviting them.”</p><p> </p><p>Scott waved him off, probably used to random people showing up at his house at weird times, but that’s just the price he had to pay for being the alpha. Brett, Corey, and Layla showed up five minutes later, not even bothering to knock before rushing in. Corey stopped when he noticed Malia.</p><p> </p><p>“You said you didn’t come here for Scott,” the other chimera said slowly, turning to Theo, “You came for <em> Malia? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>Malia snorted, exchanging an amused glance with Theo. “You don’t need to sound so surprised, we <em> do </em> get along.”</p><p> </p><p>Brett ignored her, glaring at Theo. “Why did I have to find out from Corey in a ten-second call that you and Liam are fighting?” Theo grimaced as Layla immediately agreed, both of them annoyed at not finding out from Theo. </p><p> </p><p>“I’m sorry, I wasn’t exactly thinking about spreading the word,” Theo said, trying to inject a little humor into the situation, but Brett smacked the back of his head. </p><p> </p><p>“<em>Okay</em>,” Scott cut off whatever Brett was about to say, “Someone better explain what’s going on.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo and Malia looked at each other, the werecoyote raising her eyebrow. He ran a hand through his hair, leaning back into the couch. “We had a fight.”</p><p> </p><p>Malia let out a frustrated noise, drawing everyone’s attention. She took everyone through what <em> really </em> happened, and by the end, everyone in the room looked visibly pissed.</p><p> </p><p>“If I knew <em> that’s </em> what happened, I would’ve punched Liam when he showed up at Mason’s,” Corey hissed.</p><p> </p><p>“Guys, like I already told Malia,” Theo cut in before his friends got even angrier, “It was my fault, and–”</p><p> </p><p>“Shut <em> up</em>,” Malia snarled, and even Scott next to her looked like he agreed with her, “No matter what you did, that shouldn’t have been his response. Not after everything you’ve been doing to make up for last year. Not after what happened with Monroe.”</p><p> </p><p>Silence fell in the room, as everyone thought back to a few months ago, when Theo had almost <em> died </em> because of Monroe, almost died to not betray the pack. </p><p> </p><p>“Look,” Theo broke the silence, “I know you guys don’t agree, but I think he’s right, okay?”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Not </em> okay,” Layla snapped, “You’ve been trying as hard as you can ever since the war, and <em> I </em> know that, even though I didn’t know anything about all of this until a few months ago. You’re not evil, Theo. And Liam is <em> wrong</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>“She’s right, Theo,” Scott’s gentle voice pierced the air, and Theo felt something in his chest settle at the calming tone. He never knew how much the alpha affected the pack until Scott, who just had this <em> thing </em> about him that made everyone relax. “You’ve made up for what you did, you’ve been trying. And it doesn’t matter what you said before, whether you pushed him or not, that wasn’t the right response.”</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> You’re not trying enough, Theo! It’s like you don’t even care. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>Theo tried not to flinch as the words floated through his brain again. But he did, and the everyone in the room turned to him, their expressions revealing that they knew what he was thinking about. </p><p> </p><p>“I can tackle him at our next practice,” Brett offered, and Theo couldn’t help but let out a short laugh, the tension in the room breaking slightly. “I’m serious, Coach won’t even blink an eye. I think he <em> wants </em> people to get tackled.”</p><p> </p><p>“I can make cupcakes and put salt instead of sugar,” Layla added, because apparently this was turning into a brainstorming session on ways to get petty revenge. “He’ll never see it coming.”</p><p> </p><p>“Guys–”</p><p> </p><p>Malia cut Theo off. “We can buy tickets to that history museum in the city and tell him that there wasn’t enough for him to have one.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo snickered, and the werecoyote gave him a smirk. Corey nudged Theo’s shoulder, his eyes bright. “We should order pizza and watch Winter Soldier, and then post it on Instagram.”</p><p> </p><p>Liam’s favorite food <em> and </em> favorite movie– what a deadly combination. Theo rolled his eyes, but a smile grew on his lips regardless. Everyone turned to Scott, who was the only one who hadn’t said anything, and his eyes widened when he noticed their anticipating expressions. </p><p> </p><p>“Wh– I don’t–” the alpha stammered, but then he grew quiet, tilting his head. “Liam’s here.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo stiffened, as everyone else in the room fell silent. Sure enough, Theo could hear the beta’s low voice, probably talking with Mason, as he made his way to the front door. </p><p> </p><p>“Theo?” Liam’s voice was hesitant from the other side of the door. “I know you’re there, and I– I just want to talk. To apologize.”</p><p> </p><p>Scott gave Theo a questioning look, and the chimera nodded slowly. The alpha got up to open the door, revealing Liam and Mason, who both had shocked looks on their faces when they saw everyone who was there. </p><p> </p><p>“Malia?” Liam asked, but the werecoyote glowered at him and flipped him off. The beta was taken aback for a moment, but he schooled his features and turned to Theo. “Theo, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that, no matter how annoyed I was. You deserve better than that.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo finally looked up at his boyfriend, whose expression was so <em> open</em>, and Theo knew he would have a hard time <em> not </em> forgiving him. “Okay.”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Okay? </em> ” Malia asked incredulously. “That’s <em> it? </em> That’s all you’re going to say?”</p><p> </p><p>Theo gave the werecoyote a warning look, but she ignored it, standing up and walking to Liam.</p><p> </p><p>“You,” she growled, jabbing a finger into Liam’s chest, “are an <em> asshole</em>. If Theo’s not going to say anything, <em> I </em> will. That was a dick move, and he deserves better. It took him an <em> hour </em> of running just to <em> tell </em> me what happened, and he looked like he was about to <em> cry</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>“Malia–”</p><p> </p><p>Her glare made Theo snap his mouth shut. No matter how close they had gotten over the last few months, she was still not someone Theo wanted to piss off. “Saying that after <em> everything </em> Theo’s done makes you an <em> asshole</em>,” Malia continued, and Theo could smell the waves of guilt rolling off of Liam, “He almost <em> died</em>, and you think he’s not trying <em> enough? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>Theo’s jaw dropped, because that was <em> harsh</em>, and Liam staggered back, like Malia had stabbed him. “Malia, tha–”</p><p> </p><p>“And <em> you</em>,” the werecoyote whipped around to Theo and cut off his words, “need to stop being a fucking martyr all the time. Stop letting everyone get away with anything they want, because you think you <em> deserve </em> it.”</p><p> </p><p>“I– <em> Malia– </em>”</p><p> </p><p>“Don’t fucking deny it, Theo,” Brett snarled, his eyes flashing as he looked at the chimera, “With how often you do it, it’s like you think you’re not good enough for any of us.”</p><p> </p><p>Well, he hit the nail right on the head. But Theo wasn’t about to reveal that to everyone in the room. Unfortunately, he forgot to account for the fact that Malia already knew. </p><p> </p><p>“He does,” the werecoyote said quietly, and the room was <em> too </em> silent all of a sudden.</p><p> </p><p>“What the <em> fuck</em>, Theo?” Liam snapped, and Theo’s head swiveled to meet his boyfriend’s furious expression. “Why would you think <em> that? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>“You agreed with it a few hours ago!” Theo blurted out, and his eyes widened, because he wasn’t supposed to say that. He had forgiven Liam, he wasn’t supposed to bring it up again. “I– I didn’t mean that, sorry.”</p><p> </p><p>“Don’t you dare apologize,” Corey warned, his mouth tight as he looked at Theo. “Don’t you dare <em> fucking </em> apologize for that.”</p><p> </p><p>“Theo,” Liam’s voice was laced with remorse, “I’m <em> sorry</em>. What I said was wrong, and I get why you’re upset. You <em> should </em> be, because if anyone else said that about you, <em> I’d </em> be angry. I– I’m so <em> sorry</em>. I don’t agree with it, and I didn’t when I said it. I hated myself for saying it the second after I did.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo stared at Liam for a few moments, the rest of the room fading away as he looked into those blue eyes, so wide and filled with regret and anger, though Theo knew that the latter was aimed at the beta himself. “You don’t agree with it?” he asked, and he <em> hated </em> how vulnerable he sounded.</p><p> </p><p>“No, <em> god </em> no,” Liam rushed out, taking a step toward the chimera, and Theo had to hold back the urge to fall into his arms. “You’re enough, Theo. And I– I hate that I made you think differently.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo’s face crumpled, and he wrapped his arms around his boyfriend, too weak to resist the urge anymore. Liam’s arms slid around his waist, his face pressing into Theo’s neck. Everyone else in the room was quiet, letting them hold each other for a moment. Finally, Theo pulled away, letting out a shaky breath as he turned to Malia. </p><p> </p><p>“Thank you.” He didn’t say for <em> what</em>, but she understood, nodding in acknowledgement, before a small smirk made its way onto her lips.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m still carrying out my plan,” Malia announced, and it took Theo a second to recall what she had said about the history museum before.</p><p> </p><p>“Malia, <em> no– </em>”</p><p> </p><p>“Me too,” Brett interrupted Theo, his eyes flickering to Liam. “Don’t try and stop me.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo groaned, because he didn’t want them to actually <em> do </em> their petty revenge schemes, but apparently, he didn’t really have any control over it. Layla ruffled his hair, a devilish smirk on her face as she looked at Liam, who suddenly seemed <em> very </em> scared.</p><p> </p><p>“Theo, what are they talking about?” Liam whispered, fear evident on his face and in his voice. </p><p> </p><p>“I–”</p><p> </p><p>Malia glared at him again, daring him to keep going. Theo closed his mouth, shrugging at Liam. “I don’t know.”</p><p> </p><p>That was clearly a lie, and his heart confirmed it, but Liam didn’t push him. Malia was <em> frightening </em> when she was mad, and even Liam didn’t want to deal with that. </p><p> </p><p>“Wanna go home and watch Winter Soldier and eat pizza?” the beta asked Theo with a pout, and Theo stifled a snort. He glanced up at Corey, who was smirking. Guess <em> that </em> petty revenge plan wouldn’t happen. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, Liam,” Theo said, ruffling his boyfriend’s hair. “Let’s go.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. you swear that you don’t care, and we do too (and it’s a shame that we all know that’s a lie)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I just realized that I never posted this chapter lol, it's just been sitting in my drive for days now</p><p>here's the family bonding via pranking Stiles chapter that no one asked for</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“I know I’ve called you children before,” Peter said calmly, “But that doesn’t give you permission to break into my apartment at midnight.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo and Malia took in the wine glass in Peter’s hand, the book lying open in his lap, and the romcom playing on the tv. Slow smiles spread on their faces.</p><p> </p><p>“Are you having some sort of midlife crisis?” Theo asked, amused. “Aren’t you like ten years past that point in your life?”</p><p> </p><p>Malia snorted loudly as Peter tossed the book to the side, letting out an irritated sigh. “I used to be an alpha,” the older werewolf muttered under his breath, clearly to himself. “I used to be the rich bachelor who had no attachments. How did I get <em> here? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>Theo and Malia exchanged a look, glee in their eyes. “Yep,” Malia answered Theo’s previous question. “Definitely a midlife crisis.” Both of them broke out in snickers, as Peter gave them a dry look.</p><p> </p><p>“What do you heathens want?” Peter jeered, as the two teenagers finally calmed down, wide smirks pulling their lips up. “There better be a fucking good reason.”</p><p> </p><p>“So you can break into <em> our </em> apartments, but we can’t return the favor?” Theo questioned, leaning against the wall. Malia dropped into the armchair next to Theo, giving him a mocking glare, whose late-night breaking and entering stints were no secret to either of them. </p><p> </p><p>“What do you <em> want? </em>” Peter repeated, irritated. “I’m ten seconds away from throwing you both off the balcony.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo was planning on pushing the werewolf more, but the look on his face promised murder, so he crossed his arms over his chest and schooled his expression. “We need help.”</p><p> </p><p>Surprise flashed across Peter’s face for a split-second before it was replaced with exasperation. “What did you two do?” Peter asked warily. “If you blew up another apartment, I’m not paying for the damage this time.”</p><p> </p><p>“It was <em> one </em> time, get over it,” Malia snapped, and Peter looked vaguely offended at being told to “get over” her blowing up his apartment. And then using <em> his </em> money to fix it. “What’s your opinion on Stiles?”</p><p> </p><p>Peter’s eyebrow lifted to his hairline. “You mean the hyperactive asshole that filled my brand new car with glitter last week?” Theo and Malia recalled Stiles’ pure childish joy when he showed them the pictures of Peter’s… dolled-up car. Safe to say, Peter hadn’t been amused. “I have no opinion on him whatsoever,” the older werewolf continued, pushing himself off the couch to go to the kitchen, his voice light. “I would be <em> devastated </em> if something happened to him.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo let out a snort, and watched as Peter refilled his glass of wine, the red liquid bearing an uncanny resemblance to blood now that Theo thought about it. “We would too,” he said, his lips quirking up into a smirk. “Which is why we <em> don’t </em> have a plan to get revenge on him for what he pulled two months ago.”</p><p> </p><p>Malia and Theo promised Stiles they’d get him back for leaving Theo’s jacket in Peter’s apartment after Malia blew it up, but they’d never carried through with any plan. Stiles was paranoid at the beginning, questioning every single one of their moves, but Theo and Malia pushed through, and eventually the human’s suspicions reduced. </p><p> </p><p>Which is exactly what they wanted. </p><p> </p><p>They <em> knew </em> that Stiles would know something was up if they did it right after it happened– it was too obvious, too <em> easy</em>. But now, Stiles didn’t suspect a <em> thing</em>, and Theo couldn’t <em> wait </em> to put their plan in motion. </p><p> </p><p>Peter cocked an eyebrow. “And what would this hypothetical plan– <em> not </em> that you have one, but if you <em> did</em>– consist of?”</p><p> </p><p>Malia and Theo exchanged victorious grins. Of course it would be easy to get Peter on board once he found out it was <em> Stiles</em>. </p><p> </p><p>“Do you still have the number of that exterminator you hired last month?”</p><p> </p><p>Peter’s lips curved up.</p><p> </p><p>_____________________________________</p><p> </p><p>Theo should’ve known Scott and Liam would bring out their patented “I’m not mad, just disappointed” faces.</p><p> </p><p>“Guys, no,” Scott said to Theo and Malia, the corner of his mouth pulled down a slight frown. “This is way too mean.”</p><p> </p><p>Liam crossed his arms over his chest. “Scott’s right. I thought you guys already got him back, anyway.”</p><p> </p><p>Malia and Theo groaned exasperatedly. “Can you guys put aside your bleeding heart complexes for <em> one </em> day?” Theo complained, rolling his eyes dramatically. “We’re not gonna <em> hurt </em> him.”</p><p> </p><p>“The fact that you even have to say that doesn’t help your argument,” Liam hissed, and Theo glared at him.</p><p> </p><p>“You’re getting <em> way </em> too worked up about this,” Malia stated bluntly, and Scott’s mouth parted in disbelief. “And besides, we’re doing this whether you help us or not.”</p><p> </p><p>Liam and Scott looked between Theo and Malia. “Getting you two to get along was the worst decision we made,” Scott sighed out, resigned. “Poor Stiles.”</p><p> </p><p>“Poor <em> Stiles? </em> ” Theo asked incredulously. “So you’re not fed up with his pranks at <em> all? </em> Not even a <em> little </em> bit?”</p><p> </p><p>Scott opened his mouth to respond, but no sound came out. He closed it with a guilty look on his face. </p><p> </p><p>“Exactly,” Malia drawled, turning to Liam. “You’re not mad that he keeps cockblocking you and Theo? Or that he somehow finds a way to interrupt every one of your dates with absurd excuses?”</p><p> </p><p>Liam’s mouth tightened, and Theo bit back a smile. He’s had to listen to enough of Liam’s rants that he knows <em> exactly </em> how mad Liam gets at Stiles when he cuts their dates short. In fact, Theo is certain that the only reason Liam <em> is </em> acting like he doesn’t want Theo and Malia to get revenge on the human is to keep up his reputation as the moral beta that was Scott’s second in command. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, Liam,” Theo said softly, holding back a smirk, “Aren’t you mad Stiles called us last night? Right when I was about to–”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Okay</em>,” Liam snapped. “Fine, you’re right. Do whatever the hell you want to him, but I want a recording of all of it.”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Liam</em>,” Scott chastised as Theo and Malia cheered. </p><p> </p><p>“Do you need me to remind you what Stiles did last week?” Malia deadpanned, and Theo and Liam exchanged confused looks. But Scott seemed to know what Malia was talking about, because his ears turned pink before he sighed. </p><p> </p><p>“If he finds out I was part of this, I’m blaming the both of you for everything.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo and Malia smirked. </p><p> </p><p>_____________________________________</p><p> </p><p>“Peter’s part of this?”</p><p> </p><p>Liam’s voice was borderline hysterical, and Scott’s eyes were wide as he gaped at the older werewolf leaning against the wall of Theo’s living room.</p><p> </p><p>“Don’t get your panties twisted, puppy,” Peter drawled, and Liam growled in his direction. “And Theo and Malia came to <em> me </em> first, so that makes me more important than <em> both </em> of you.”</p><p> </p><p>“Peter,” Theo warned, and Peter raised his hands in surrender. “No one’s more important than anyone, okay? We all have the same goal here.”</p><p> </p><p>“I can’t believe you guys went to <em> him </em> first,” Scott muttered under his breath, and Peter’s lips quirked up. </p><p> </p><p>“Well, I do believe they are the <em> smarter </em> halves of your relationships, aren’t they?”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Peter</em>,” Malia snarled, as Theo held Liam back from attacking the older werewolf. </p><p> </p><p>“Don’t try and tell me it isn’t true,” Peter continued, despite the fact that he was literally <em> watching </em> Liam try to claw at him, “Saint alpha and baby beta here might have their bleeding hearts, but you and Theo are <em> clearly </em> the brains of this operation.”</p><p> </p><p>Scott looked offended, while Liam was still struggling in Theo’s arms. “You’re biased,” Scott pointed out, and Peter’s smirk broadened. </p><p> </p><p>“Doesn’t make it any less true.”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Okay</em>,” Theo stressed, yanking Liam back until he fell onto the couch. “Can you guys just get along for <em> one day </em> so we can get Stiles back? You can go back to antagonizing each after, okay?”</p><p> </p><p>“He’s an <em> asshole</em>,” Liam hissed from the couch, and Theo patted his arm comfortingly, because <em> yes</em>, Peter was an asshole.</p><p> </p><p>“But I’m the asshole who gave your boyfriend an apartment <em> and </em> money,” Peter retorted, and Theo groaned. “Come to think of it, he wouldn’t even <em> be </em> your boyfriend if it wasn’t for <em> me</em>.”</p><p> </p><p>“Oh my <em> god</em>, shut the fuck up, Peter,” Theo sighed out, because that was <em> not </em> true. Well, the <em> second </em> part wasn’t true. “We should’ve just done this by ourselves,” he said to Malia, who looked about two seconds away from mauling someone. Probably Peter.</p><p> </p><p>“But if we leave them here now, they’ll end up killing each other,” Malia responded, but her face showed that she was clearly contemplating it.</p><p> </p><p>“No, we wouldn–”</p><p> </p><p>“What if we tie them up with wolfsbane and put them in opposite corners of the room?” Theo mused, carrying out his conversation with Malia as if the other three weren’t even there.</p><p> </p><p>“What the fu–”</p><p> </p><p>“That could work,” Malia cut Liam off, her eyes glinting. “You got wolfsbane?”</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, it should be around here somewhere,” Theo trailed off as he stepped into the kitchen, hiding a smirk. 3, 2, 1–</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Theo</em>,” Liam whined, and Theo couldn’t hold back his laughter anymore. He walked back into the room, exchanging an amused grin with Malia. Peter had surprisingly stayed quiet, and was just rolling his eyes. Scott was shaking his head in that <em> Scott </em> way, and Liam was pouting on the couch. </p><p> </p><p>“We weren’t kidding,” Theo warned them as he dropped down next to Liam, who immediately moved closer to him. “I’m not above tying you guys up with wolfsbane if you don’t get along.”</p><p> </p><p>Peter rolled his eyes again. “Just get on with it. I got places to be, things to do, and my tolerance for saint number one and saint number two is dwindling.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo took a deep breath to try and stop himself from snapping at the older werewolf again. </p><p> </p><p>“Okay, so this is what we have so far…”</p><p> </p><p>_____________________________________</p><p> </p><p>Stiles’ scream was audible even from Theo’s truck, and Theo’s lips quirked up. “You guys recording?” he said into his phone, and once he got the confirmation from Liam, he pressed mute. Malia snickered quietly next to him, and despite the rough beginning, including Liam and Scott was a <em> vital </em> part of the plan, because Theo and Malia being in the house would’ve been <em> way </em> too obvious.</p><p> </p><p>“...ott, there’s a cockroach in the shower, can you get rid of it?” Stiles’ voice blared from the phone, and although Theo and Malia couldn’t <em> see </em> what was happening, the human’s panic was evident. Finding out that Stiles had a weird phobia of cockroaches had been the best thing that could’ve come from Theo joining the pack, honestly. “Scott? <em> Scott? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>And Theo’s grin widened when he heard another scream, a little more high-pitched this time. “Guess he found the ten other roaches, then,” Theo said brightly, and Malia and Peter’s amusement drifted off of them in waves. </p><p> </p><p>“What the <em> fuck</em>, where are these even <em> coming </em> from?” Stiles yelled, and Theo heard Liam struggling to hold back his laughter on the other side of the phone. </p><p> </p><p>“This wasn’t <em> too </em> mean, right?” Theo asked all of a sudden, and Malia and Peter gave him twin unimpressed looks.</p><p> </p><p>“You need to stop hanging out with Liam all the time,” Malia drawled, and Theo’s mouth curled up. “Now shut up and enjoy this.”</p><p> </p><p>If everything was going to plan, there should be another scream in 3, 2, 1–</p><p> </p><p>Theo snickered as Stiles’ shriek filled the air. </p><p> </p><p>Oh yeah, Theo was <em> definitely </em> gonna enjoy this.</p><p> </p><p>_____________________________________</p><p> </p><p>Stiles was pouting on the couch, his arms crossed over his chest. He had gone and complained to <em> Melissa </em> of all people, and now Theo, Malia, Peter, Liam, and Scott were in the living room across from Melissa and Stiles, with various degrees of amusement on their faces. </p><p> </p><p>“Should’ve known you were a tattler, Stiles,” Theo teased, and even Scott bit back a smile at that, much to Stiles’ chagrin.</p><p> </p><p>“I hate you guys, <em> all </em> of you,” the human hissed at Scott. “You’re supposed to be <em>my</em> best friend and you helped <em> them? </em>”</p><p> </p><p>“Stiles–”</p><p> </p><p>“Can <em> someone </em> please explain what’s going on here?” Melissa cut Scott off, impatience flashing in her eyes. Theo and Malia looked at each other. A beat passed. Then another. And then the room exploded with voices.</p><p> </p><p>“He left my jacket in the kitche–”</p><p> </p><p>“...keeps <em> interrupting</em>, and I’m <em> sick </em> of i–”</p><p> </p><p>“... his <em> pranks</em>, oh my <em> god </em>–”</p><p> </p><p>“It was supposed to be a <em> joke</em>–”</p><p> </p><p>“... us last week and we were on a <em> date</em>–”</p><p> </p><p>“... with <em> cockroaches</em>, out of <em> everything</em>–”</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Stop! </em>”</p><p> </p><p>Melissa’s voice rang out and the room fell silent. “I can’t believe I’m saying this,” she sighed after a few moments. “Peter, explain.”</p><p> </p><p>The older werewolf’s ever present smirk didn’t waver as everyone turned to him. “Stiles is an asshole, and everyone finally realized it.”</p><p> </p><p>“You know what, <em> fuck </em> you, Pete–”</p><p> </p><p>Stiles snapped his mouth shut when he saw Melissa’s glare. </p><p> </p><p>“Basically,” Peter continued, “Stiles keeps pranking everyone <em> and </em> interrupting their dates for no good reason. And Theo and Malia were also pissed about the whole leaving the jacket in the kitchen thing.”</p><p> </p><p>“I <em> knew </em> you guys weren’t over that,” Stiles accused, turning to them, and Theo bared his teeth.</p><p> </p><p>Melissa pinched the bridge of her nose. “You guys are a bunch of <em> toddlers</em>, I <em> swear</em>,” she said. “Stiles, stop pranking people, or next time it’s gonna be worse than cockroaches. And stop interrupting their dates. Scott and Liam, I’m kind of disappointed that you guys let this happen. And Theo and Malia–” Melissa broke off, giving the two of them a wary look. “You know what, you guys are Peter’s problem, I’m not dealing with that.”</p><p> </p><p>Theo and Malia smirked, as Stiles started to protest.</p><p> </p><p>“Great,” Peter drawled, “You guys want ice cream?”</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Theo and Malia exchanged an amused glance. Maybe Peter being their parental figure wasn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>completely</span>
  </em>
  <span> awful.</span>
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